


Of All The Things My Hands Have Held

by sophiamggwelsh



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: F/F, Fluff, post redemption, sounds sexual but literally is super innocent
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-19
Updated: 2016-08-19
Packaged: 2018-08-09 19:32:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,188
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7814353
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sophiamggwelsh/pseuds/sophiamggwelsh
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jasper is experiencing all sorts of new things on Earth. Including having her head scratched.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Of All The Things My Hands Have Held

“Even though the donuts are best when you get them fresh, there’s something special about day-old chocolate frosted ones, you know?”

Jasper couldn’t believe it. She and Steven had walked around the entire town twice, stopping for Steven to point things out and talk to every human he passed, and somehow he wasn’t tired of talking. Not that Jasper completely minded. It had been a long and strange journey, but once she began to understand that this human hybrid was not Rose Quartz, she began to appreciate him as a person. He was the one who seemed to have the most faith in her assimilation onto Earth and with the Crystal Gems. He was the one who noticed her getting restless around the house and suggested taking a walk. But there was only so much discussion about human food she could take before she started zoning out.

Steven was still talking as they walked up the wooden steps, in which Jasper started to hear humming from inside.

“Oh, Pearl must be home!” Steven ran the few extra steps and into the house, barreling towards Pearl. Pearl was standing by the kitchen counter, stirring something in a large bowl. She must be making something for Steven, Jasper thought, knowing Pearl never ate. She smiled brightly at Steven, then looked up and nodded politely at Jasper. Jasper was still new to this whole friend thing, and learning how to talk to Pearl seemed so much harder for her than talking to Steven. So she just nodded back. 

“How did your walk go?” Pearl said, smiling down at Steven.

“Really great! They’ve started putting posters up for Beach-A-Palooza, and Connie and I are gonna do a duet this year!”

“That’s wonderful, I’m sure you two will be amazing.” As she said this, she reached down and placed her hand on top of Steven’s head, which Jasper had seen her done dozens of times, but then she started…to scratch it? Jasper stared, trying to figure out what was going on as Steven let out a contented hum.

“What exactly are you doing? Is this another human thing?” Jasper asked.

Pearl looked confused, but Steven gasped.

“Oh my gosh Jasper, you’ve never had your head scratched? Having your head scratched is probably like top ten in best feelings in the whole world!”

“You’re kidding, right? Why don’t you just scratch your own head?”

“ ‘Cuz it totally doesn’t feel the same! It’s like how you can’t tickle yourself.”

This also meant nothing to Jasper, so she’d have to just take his word on it. Steven gasped again and turned to Pearl, who had been watching the two, amused.

“Pearl, you should scratch Jasper’s head! You’ve got the best head scratching hands, but don’t tell that to Garnet.”

Pearl gave Steven an incredulous look. “Oh I don’t know Steven, I’m sure Jasper doesn’t want people putting their hands in her hair like that, right Jasper?”

Pearl looked up at Jasper finally, and Jasper could see that she had a tinge of blue on her cheeks. Jasper shrugged. She didn’t see what the big deal was, or why Pearl was being so…Pearl about it. Jasper just responded by bending her knees and head down low enough for Pearl to reach.

“Oh,” Peal said sounding clearly shocked, “Alright then.”

At first nothing happened, as if Pearl changed her mind, then Jasper felt long fingers slowly push into her hair. That feeling alone was…something else. Her fingers met Jasper’s scalp and she began to lightly scratch her head. 

Jasper would deny it to the day she was shattered, but she may have let out a low growl from the back of her throat. She could barely hear Steven let out a pleased laugh off to the side. It felt phenomenal. Had Jasper ever been touched like this in all her thousands of years? Kindly, with no alternative motive but to make her feel nice. Never. It wasn’t even a sensation she would have imagined back when her life consisted only of being a Home World soldier.

She didn’t think. She picked up Pearl up by the waist, placed her so she was sitting on the counter, stood so that she was standing between Pearl’s legs and pushed her head into Pearl’s hands, which had never even left her hair Jasper had swept her up so that fast.

Pearl quickly pulled her hands away. 

“Jasper! What-what do you think you’re doing?”

Jasper looked up, realizing now how close she was standing, still in between Pearl’s legs. At this height, they were face to face.

“Making it easier for you to scratch my head.” Jasper said this as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“You can’t just-just grab people like that though!” The blue flush on Pearl’s cheeks was spreading. This was the closest Jasper had ever been to her like this and had to admit to herself that it was pretty cute. But she also felt a little bad now. She suddenly remembered something Steven said earlier that day, about being truly considerate meant doing nice things for people without them having to ask. So she did the most logical thing she could think of as an apology in that moment. Still facing Pearl, she reached her hand to the back of Pearl’s head, slipped it into her short hair, and, minding her strength, started to scratch. 

Holy stars, if Jasper thought having her head scratched was a great sensation, hearing Pearl lightly gasp, this time with not only shock but definitely pleasure, was an even better one.

Clearly embarrassed by the sound she made, Pearl scrambled her legs up on the counter, swung them around to the other side, and without looking at Jasper or Steven, grabbed the bowl she was mixing earlier.

“I’m going to finish mixing this in the temple!” Pearl practically ran to the temple door and disappeared into it. 

After a couple silent moments, Steven sighed, making Jasper turn in time to see Steven shaking his head.

“What? I didn’t hurt her!” Jasper said gruffly, starting to feel slightly panicked. Maybe she did hurt Pearl. She knew she was much physically stronger than the other Gems and definitely humans, but she had been trying her best to mindful of her strength these days. 

“I was just trying to be considerate, like you told me to!”

“And that was…a good try! You wanted to scratch her head back and that was nice. I don’t think you hurt her. But I think you may have embarrassed Pearl a little.” Steven didn’t say it cruelly. “Pearl’s right though, you shouldn’t just grab people without their permission.”

Jasper opened her mouth again ready to defend her point. It wasn’t her intention to embarrass Pearl, and why are there so many rules on Earth? She was really trying, dammit. 

Then she remembered the look of embarrassment on Pearl’s face as she scrambled off the table and Jasper sighed.

“I’ll apologize when she comes out.”

Steven patted Jasper’s hand and said, “Sounds good. Maybe we can work on that apology together though."

**Author's Note:**

> Honestly this whole thing was just an ode to having someone scratch you head. What a wholesome feeling, amirite?
> 
> Talk to me at [my tumblr!](http://the-panda-palace.tumblr.com/)


End file.
